Big Brown.....#1 post for the Belmont.

[a kennedy]

Yikes that's a pretty tough spot to start from isn't it??

[two gun sid]

1. How about some pictures of BB on the track?....

courtesy of my friend, OB.

[a kennedy]

2. Thanks, and I sure hope that crack doesn't get worse......

keeping fingers crossed for winning the crown!! :thumbsup:

[two gun sid]

3. Post Position Draw

140th Belmont Stakes (gr. I), June 7

Post Horse Jockey Trainer Morning Line
1 Big Brown K. Desormeaux R. Dutrow, Jr. 2-5
2 Guadalcanal J. Castellano F. Seitz 50-1
3 Macho Again G. Gomez D. Stewart 20-1
4 Denis of Cork R. Albarado D. Carroll 12-1
5 Casino Drive E. Prado K. Fujisawa 7-2
6 Da’ Tara A. Garcia N. Zito 30-1
7 Tale of Ekati E. Coa B. Tagg 20-1
8 Anak Nakal J. Leparoux N. Zito 30-1
9 Ready’s Echo J. Velazquez T. Pletcher 30-1
10 Icabad Crane Jeremy Rose G. Motion 20-1

[two gun sid]

4. Which Belmont Stakes was most memorable to you?...

For me I think it would be the 1976 edition. Speedster Bold Forbes had won the Derby then lost to Honest Pleasure in the Preakness after tearing up his left rear heel. Fitted with a special shoe and no TC on the line, Bold Forbes returned to action in the Belmont to once again take on arch rival Honest Pleasure.

Leading up to the race, Bold Forbes' Trainer, Laz Barrera, gave his horse a series of slow, long works.

Bold Forbes broke first from the gate and shot to the lead. All the other riders thought that he would tire going 1 1/2 miles and no one went with him. Jockey Angel Cordero was able to conserve Bold Forbes' energy with the uncontested lead the others allowed him and brought his horse home first, winning by a neck. At the end of the race Bold Forbes dropped to his knees in exhaustion.

One of the greatest performances by a trainer and jockey and a horse that had one of the greatest hearts I've seen, ever.

[two gun sid]

5. Doh...

Bold Forbes and Honest Pleasure dueled each other into the ground in the Preakness with Bold Forbes finishing 3rd and Honest Pleasure out of it. Honest Pleasure did not run in the Belmont. My memory is going to hell. I apologize for any misunderstanding. Everything else I said was true though.

[TZ]

6. Most memorable?

One that happened not too long ago..Smarty Jones losing the TC by Birdstone putting his nose ahead in the final strides...

[two gun sid]

8. I was a big Smarty fan...

I was not disappointed with his Belmont though. I never thought he was gonna get 1 1/2 in good company and I feel he did a pretty good job finishing where he did. That last quarter was trotting horse time slow, and Smarty's legs were pretty wobbly in the stretch but he never quit. He was a real nice horse and I still think he should have been Horse Of The Year.

[jakefrep]

21. I remember that....

...I had gone to Hazel Park in Detroit to see a friend's horse go in a big trot, and watched the Belmont on the simulcast. The grandstand shook all the way down to the foundation when Smarty took the lead at the top of the stretch, and how deflated the place got when he lost.

[Awsi Dooger]

9. Victory Gallup's win over Real Quiet was memorable

A desperate photo to decide a Triple Crown, with potential for inquiry and reversal if Real Quiet had prevailed. Can't get much more drama than that.

I was desperate for Real Quiet to be denied and I felt like I was shoving Victory Gallup every jump of the way down the stretch, once he loomed to have a shot. Previously it appeared to be a waltz for Real Quiet.

It's one of those instances where I remember where I was. I accompanied my dad when he bowled in a state tournament in central Florida. I was watching USC defeat Arizona St for the College World Series title in the bar of the bowling alley, then clicked to the Belmont at the last minute. The other patrons were more interested in the damn baseball but I had to assert myself and manually click the channel, even as many of them protested. A few minutes later, after the great race, they thanked me.

Anyway, it's interesting that Big Brown draws far outside in the Derby, mid pack at Pimlico, now on the rail at Belmont. The way he's trending, his next race logically breaks from outside in a turf race.

That post is fine at a mile and a half. I just hope they don't dawdle, like 25 flat, 50 flat, 1:14 flat for Affirmed/Alydar. Those early splits always caused that '78 race to be less awesome and memorable than the conventional wisdom.

***

BTW, interesting column Wednesday in the Miami Herald by Greg Cote:

"Big frown on Big Brown" That was the headline in the print edition. I notice it was tamed substantially on the 'net. Overall I agree with his themes, other than Big Brown being an overrated horse. He should have emphasized the other points, and not concluded with the tired good-horse-in-a-weak-lot stuff.

http://www.miamiherald.com/611/story/557075.html

"The colt Big Brown angles this week to win horse racing's first Triple Crown in 30 years, and probably will, and it would be a terrific feel-good story but for one persisting little matter.

It doesn't feel good. Not like it should, anyway.

Big Brown doesn't feel like a horse we love, or really even know, or particularly want to root for. It isn't the animal's fault.

A number of factors create the impression that, after three decades of looking forward to the next Triple Crown winner and only the 12th ever, we sort of hope we're still waiting after Saturday's 140th Belmont Stakes."

[two gun sid]

13. I have to admit: I was pulling for Real Quiet...

and I thought he had the thing won. I felt pretty bad when Victory Gallup beat him. I wanted a TC winner.

[a kennedy]

10. Secretariet's race is still the one for me.

:bounce: :loveya: :woohoo: :applause:

[TZ]

11. I'm sure thats the one for a lot of the older fans...

However, I being 4 at the time, was too young...

[two gun sid]

14. Shit, I'm old...

For me, two of Secretariat's races stick out in my mind. His Preakness and the last race of his career, The Canadian International Turf. The Preakness because of the move he made on the first turn and his last race because I finally figured out what a good horse he was and then seeing him coming around the last turn on that cold, rainy autumn day looking like a steam locomotive. It sent chills down my spine.

[two gun sid]

12. Good choice...

It was awe inspiring. I was a fan of Sham and I thought he was due to beat Secretariat. Boy, was I ever wrong about that.

[aaronbees]

15. Swale's Belmont victory

I loved that horse after seeing him (in person!) win the Kentucky Derby and was hearbroken after his Preakness loss. The Belmont was a great, shining moment in between that second jewel of the Triple Crown and Swale's untimely demise. Second: Secretariat (which I say is the greatest athletic achievement ever). Third: Rags to Riches.

[two gun sid]

19. Swale. I hadn't even thought about him...

good call.

[Justpat]

7. It not a bad post for a long race.

If it was a six furlong race with tons of speed on the outside of the one horse,
the one horse has no options but to go for the lead or get shut off on the inside.

In a race like the Belmont, the horses will sort themselves out by the time they
hit the backside.

[aaronbees]

16. Big Brown: Flying Down the Stretch on the Wings of .... Hooters?

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/more_sports/2008/06/04/2008-06-04_hooters_jumps_aboard_big_brown_with_spon.html

Hooters jumps aboard Big Brown with sponsorship deal

BY CHRISTINA BOYLE
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Wednesday, June 4th 2008, 8:50 PM

Hooters will have a leg up on the competition at this Saturday's Belmont Stakes.

The owners of Triple Crown contender Big Brown have sold sponsorship of the jockey's silks to the well-endowed restaurant chain.

The buxom brand's logo - which features an owl peering through the 'OO' in "Hooters" - will be emblazoned on Kent Desormeaux's legs as his horse makes a bid to become the first Triple Crown winner in 30 years.

And if Big Brown makes it to the winner's circle, he will be greeted by busty Hooters girls in tightfitting T-shirts.

[Justpat]

17. NYRA said no to any idea of the Hooters girls in the winners circle.

This whole outfit is like the fraternity in Animal House vs. the college administation.
In the movie I was rooting for the animals - here not so much, except for BB.

This will certainly bring out the younger males though.

[two gun sid]

18. Good for NYRA...

when I read the part about the Hooters' Girls meeting BB in the winners circle the first thought in my mind was, "Oh shit, somebody's gonna get kicked in the head."

I had to chuckle about your analogy. Animal House, indeed.

[aaronbees]

20. Good to hear

I wonder if they'll be having a viewing party at my local Hooters (front page news down here when they opened here in BibleLand - I kid ya not - I got to write the story). But frankly that place is gross.

Think I'll ditch that and go to the sports bar down the street that smells like a Louisiana swamp boat instead. :P

Gotta admit ... I'm starting to have second thoughts and think I may root Big Brownie on home like crazy. Fuck the owners, fuck the trainer, fuck the corporate hype ... it's the horse that will do the job and if he does, it will be beautiful.

Isn't that why we watch this - to see a real glimpse of greatness?

[Justpat]

22. Yep, that is why we do this.

And I really, really like this horse. He is so unigue.

And even though I detest his connections, I will be rooting for him every step of the way.

[TZ]

23. Yep. True

Listening to Dutrow open his big fat mouth the other day really irritated me, but I really love BB (I also think he's an incredibly handsome horse) and hope we can all gather here later today to celebrate a TC...:)